Protective garment

ABSTRACT

A protective garment for protection of body parts against cuts or puncture wounds comprising an inner layer, a protective layer and an outer layer, the protective layer being composed of a wire mesh of woven metal wires, the thickness of the metal wires being between 0.03 mm and 0.20 mm and the apertures in the wire mesh being between 0.05 mm and 0.45 mm.

CROSS REFERENCE TO OTHER APPLICATIONS

This is the National Stage filing of PCT NO99/00163 May 21, 1999.

FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

There are no federally sponsored or funded research or developmentprojects or undertakings in any way associated with the instantinvention.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a protective garment for protectingbody parts against cuts and puncture wounds caused by sharp objects suchas, e.g., hypodermic needles, fishhooks, broken glass etc., where atleast a portion of the garment comprises at least one inner layer, atleast one protective layer and possibly one or more outer layers.

2. Background Information

People are exposed to cuts or puncture wounds in many differentsituations. For cleaning personnel the presence of used hypodermicsyringes in public places as well as sharp objects in the rubbish are acommon problem. Used syringes and broken glass are also used as a threatin situations where people are under attack, and therefore police,watchmen and other security personnel are exposed to injuries of thiskind. Nor is it uncommon to find broken glass at the scene of anaccident, and in such places the helpers are in danger of receiving cutsin connection with rescue work. Firemen are particularly exposed to suchinjury when they have to enter buildings where there is a fire, andwhere broken glass or other sharp objects may be lying on the ground.

Another situation where it is relevant to use protective clothing is inthe field of medical and laboratory work, where sharp objects areemployed while blood and other body fluids are also handled with therisk of infection this involves.

Other cases where there is a need for protective clothing are in thefishing industry, where sharp hooks represent a danger, and in the fishprocessing or meat production business, e.g. slaughterhouses.

The protective garments for use in said and similar such cases shouldfulfill several requirements. The garments should prevent sharp objectsfrom penetrating them and reaching the skin, they should permit ease ofmovement when wearing the garments, they should be easy to wash andpossibly disinfect, and in general they should be comfortable to use.The latter will lead to the advantage that the garments are always usedwhen there is any risk of injury, and not only in special, highlyexposed situations.

There are several known solutions for protective garments where theequipment comprises a protective layer, and in some of these solutionsthe use of metallic materials is involved. Some of these prior artsolutions will be described in the following.

DE-Al-3.023.990 describes a protective glove which is manufactured bybraiding or knitting of so-called special steel wire. In a preferredembodiment, the glove is knitted from a steel wire which is enveloped bya textile fiber. The publication also states, however, that the glovecan be knitted from uncovered steel wire and subsequently provided witha skin-protecting layer on the inside and a wear layer on the outside. Adisadvantage of this glove is that it will be unable to offer thecombination of flexibility of use and satisfactory protection againstpuncture wounds. It is stated that the glove should be made of metalwire in all its parts, both round the fingers, in the palm, and on theback of the hand. If flexibility and mobility are to be achieved withsuch a glove, it has to be manufactured in large mesh sizes, thusreducing the glove's protective power, especially against penetration ofsharp objects.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,231,700 discloses a glove designed to protect medicalpersonnel against cuts and against penetration of hypodermic needles.The glove is woven in its entirety from a yarn which preferably consistsof an elastic core of, e.g. Lycra, round which is wound an outermaterial with great tensile strength such as, e.g. Kevlar. Thepublication describes the possibility of using metal composites as anadditional component in the outer material but this is not recommendedon account of reduced sensitivity and mobility. Those portions of theglove which in addition to protecting against cuts and tears are alsomeant to be resistant to puncture wounds, e.g. from syringes, arefurther covered with a puncture-impeding layer, which is preferably madeof leather. This glove does indeed offer satisfactory protection tomedical personnel when dealing with syringes, bone fragments and thelike, but is not sufficiently robust to offer adequate protection undercritical circumstances such as, e.g. situations involving an attack orhandling broken glass. Reinforcing the glove by addition of metal to thematerial from which the whole glove is made would again result inreduced flexibility and usefulness, as mentioned in the publication.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,004,295 describes a glove which is particularly usefulfor work in the meat production industry. This is achieved by having theglove made of nonmetallic fiber yarn, preferably Kevlar, reinforced withmetallic fiber wires. This design offers good protection against cuts,e.g. from knives, but not against penetration of sharp objects.

DE-3.805.671 discloses a working glove, suitable for deburring metalparts. The glove is made of steel wire with a diameter between 0.2 mmand 0.8 mm, with a mesh between 1 mm 4 mm. It is internally equippedwith an inner glove of leather or fabric. This glove is well suited forits application, but unsuitable for protection against penetration ofsharp objects, due to the large mesh. Any reduction in the mesh in orderto make this glove puncture-proof would make it rigid and immobile, andunsuitable for use.

A protective glove with built-in metal parts is also described inDE-A-4.341.039. The problem of mobility is solved here by the glovecomprising several loose metallic parts which together cover thefinger's inner surface and which slide over one another when the fingeris moved. However, each metallic part is rigid and the mobility isrestricted for this reason.

In all the known solutions, mobility and comfort have to be sacrificedfor the sake of attaining sufficient protection.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The object of the invention to provide an improved protective garmentwhere the main drawbacks of the previously known solutions are avoided.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object is achieved according to the invention with a protectivegarment of the type mentioned at the beginning, characterized in that atleast one protective layer consists of a wire mesh which is composed ofmetal wires, where the thickness of the metal wire is between 0.03 mmand 0.2 mm and the apertures in the wire mesh are between 0.05 mm and0.45 mm.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention the wire mesh is woven frommetal wires consisting of non-corrosive, stainless steel.

Further advantages are achieved in embodiments as set forth in theclaims.

The invention has the surprising effect that it provides good protectionwith very small dimensions in the wire mesh. This leads both to materialsavings and to the achievement of substantial mobility when using theprotective garment. At the same time the small aperture in the wire meshprevents thin, sharp objects from penetrating the protective layer. Aparticularly high degree of protection, with a further reduction in theability of sharp objects to penetrate the glove, is achieved by usingseveral protective layers of wire mesh.

When used, e.g., in the medical field, it is important that the finemotor mechanism, i.e. the ability to handle small objects and performsmall precise movements, should remain unaltered when using protectivegarments. For this application an especially thin wire mesh should beused.

In a specially preferred embodiment of the invention the protectivegarment constitutes a glove. The glove consists of an inner layer whichis comfortable against the skin (preferably of cotton), one or moreprotective layers, each consisting of wire mesh, and an outer layerwhich also provides a certain degree of protection, and which preferablyconsists of leather. In order to improve mobility while also making theglove lighter, only a few areas of the glove comprise the protectivelayer of wire mesh. The protective layers cover the palm of the hand andthe inner surfaces of the fingers, while the rest of the hand is freefrom protective layers. The fastening of the various layers to oneanother is crucial with regard to the glove's flexibility, and in apreferred embodiment the inner layer and the protective layers arejoined together by gluing, and the outer layer is sewn together with theinner layer along the glove's natural outer seams or only in the areaaround the finger tips and/or the wrist. In order to reinforce theglove's protective properties, a greater number of protective layers maybe employed in the palm area than in the area covering the innersurfaces of the fingers.

It is also possible to sew or laminate the layers together, or theprotective layers may be loosely arranged between the inner and outerlayers.

The protective garment according to the invention may be provided in theform of a removable article of clothing for placing directly on the bodyor on the outside of ordinary clothes. The article consists an innerlayer in a soft and comfortable material (e.g. cotton), a number ofprotective layers consisting of wire mesh and preferably an outer layerin a soft material (e.g. cotton) if the article is intended for useunder the clothes as an insert, or possibly of a more hard-wearingmaterial (e.g. leather) if the article is to be used externally. Thearticle is provided with Velcro or other fastening mechanisms whichpermit swift and easy fastening to the clothes or round the body or abody part.

Where the protective garment according to the invention is a waistcoator jacket, in a special embodiment it has been found advantageous, butnot necessary, to omit fastening the protective layer to the otherlayers, and instead let it be provided as an insertion between the innerand outer layer.

The protective garment according to the invention, especially in thecase of a waistcoat or jacket, may also contain a number of layers ofTWARON, KEVLAR or other special material employed in the manufacture ofbullet-proof garments. In this case, the garment will not only bebullet-proof, but also resistant to hypodermic needles and other sharpobjects.

Hunting wear and motorcycle suits may also be made in the form ofprotective garments according to the invention. The wire mesh'sflexibility and not least its ductility will make the garment highlysuited to this use.

The invention will now be described by means of the attached drawings inwhich:

A DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates two types of wire mesh for use in the invention,

FIG. 2 illustrates the placing of the wire mesh in a glove according tothe invention viewed from the side,

FIG. 3 illustrates the placing of the wire mesh in a glove according tothe invention viewed from the palm side.

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the wire mesh in a glove.

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the wire mesh in a glove.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a glove constructed of the wire mesh.

A DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 illustrates sections of two types of wire mesh for use in theinvention. In a preferred embodiment, indicated by A, the wire meshwoven in the ordinary manner, and consists of stainless, non-corrosivesteel, quality AISI 316. The dimensions of mesh A are 0.05 mm in wirediameter and 0.077 mm in the mesh's aperture. Mesh B shows one ofseveral examples of a wire mesh of an alternative weaving, a so-calledTwill weaving, which may be used in wire mesh according to theinvention.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate the placing of protective layers in a gloveaccording to the invention. The glove comprises an inner layer (notshown) of a fabric material which is comfortable when in contact withthe wearer's skin (e.g. leather or a cotton material), a number ofprotective layers which are composed of wire mesh, and an outer layer(not shown) of a wear-resistant material (e.g. leather).

In the preferred embodiment the inner layer and the protective layersare joined together by gluing, while the outer layer is only fastened tothe inner layer only at the fingertips or near the wrist, preferably bymeans of seams, or by gluing. The outer layer may be fastened at otherportions, but particularly along the glove's natural outer seams. It isan advantage if only the protective layer located nearest the innerlayer is glued to the innermost layer, and preferably substantiallyalong the entire width of the protective layer. The remaining protectivelayers may then be fastened to the protective layer located nearest theinnermost layer by gluing, taping or the like. The remaining protectivelayers may be arranged by folding the wire mesh, or alternatively theymay be arranged without fastening, particularly in the case where anouter layer is provided on the garment. All the different layers, butparticularly the inner layer and the protective layers, may however, bejoined in other well-known per se ways, e.g. by means of seams or bylamination.

As illustrated in the drawings, the wire mesh covers the palm of thehand and the inner surface of the fingers. The mesh extends only over apart of the fingers' lateral surfaces, both because it is assumed thatthe rear surface of the hand (i.e. the back of the hand) will not beexposed to harmful influences to the same extent as the front surfaceand because good flexibility and mobility are hereby achieved. Incovering the palm of the hand, five layers of wire mesh are preferablyemployed, while two layers are employed for the remaining portions.There are several important reasons for using more layers for the palmthan for the fingers. The palm is often the most exposed surface,particularly for severe stresses, and it does not have such a great needfor mobility as the fingers. A special factor is that the palmrepresents a more stable point of support in the case of, e.g., apuncture stress, while it will be easier for the fingers to yield andbend away. The palm should therefore be more heavily protected againstinjury than the finger portions.

The mesh which is employed in this embodiment of the invention ispreferably a wire mesh of the type designated by A in FIG. 1. Theillustrated wire mesh is woven in the ordinary way, the warp wires (thelongitudinal wires) and the weft wires (the transverse wires) passingover and under one another every other time, the warp wires and the weftwires being arranged at a 90° angle. Within the scope of the invention,however, it will be obvious that it will also be possible to use othertypes of wire mesh known to those skilled in the art, as long as theyare covered by the dimensions for thickness and aperture which aredefined in the claims. For example, the warp and weft wires may crossone another in a different pattern, such as, e.g., so-called Twill weaveas illustrated by B in FIG. 1, where each weft wire first crosses overtwo, and then under two warp wires, or some of the wires in the weavemay have a different thickness to the other wires (e.g. so-called Dutchweave). A further alternative is that the angle between the warp andweft wires can deviate from the preferred 90°, preferably being between30° and 150° (so-called pantographed weave).

For a person skilled in the art it is also obvious that the metal wireswhich form the wire mesh may each consist of a single filament,so-called monofilament wire, or several filaments which, e.g., areintertwined, so-called multifilament wire. Both of these alternativesthus lie within the scope of the invention. In the latter case thedimensions which are related to the wire will apply to the wire viewedas a whole, and not each filament individually.

The metal wires preferably consist of non-corrosive, stainless steel.Among the alternative materials which will be obvious to a personskilled in the art we may mention here galvanized steel; ferroalloyswith carbon, chromium; nickel and nickel alloys with copper, chromiumand/or iron; and titanium.

The wire mesh may be arranged so as to form any angle whatever betweenthe wire mesh's wires and the main direction of the seams in theprotective garment. In the preferred embodiment of a protective glovethe wire mesh is provided so that the warp or weft wire is parallel tothe longitudinal direction of the glove.

It has been shown to be advantageous to employ at least two layers ofwire mesh as a protective layer, and additional layers where necessarywith a view to resistance to puncture and injury. However, it is withinthe scope of the invention to employ any number of layers, at least one,for wire mesh as a protective layer.

The different protective layers of wire mesh may be of an identicaltype, or they may be different, provided at least one of the protectivelayers is designed according to the invention, with dimensions asindicated in the patent claims.

Each protective layer is preferably made of wire mesh with the samedesign and wire dimensions along the full extent of the protectivelayer. Within the scope of the invention, however, a protective layermay instead be made of wire mesh of a different design and differentwire dimensions in different portions of the protective layer.

The inner layer is preferably made of a cotton material, butalternatively it may be of a different material which has propertieswhich make it suitable for placing directly against the skin, includingsynthetic fabrics, leather, wool, and various textile mixtures, whichmay, e.g., be knitted or woven and sewn.

The optional outer layer preferably consists of leather, butalternatively it may be another hard-wearing material of appropriatesoftness, tensile strength and resistance to the external conditions towhich it may be assumed the garment will be exposed in each individualcase. Thus the outer layer may alternatively consist of natural orsynthetic fabric, or a combination thereof, which may, e.g. be knittedor woven and sewn, or possibly made of rubber or a soft syntheticmaterial.

It will be obvious for a person skilled in the art that there are manypossible applications for the invention, including those mentioned inthe fields of medicine and laboratory work, the fire service, police,fisheries, military field equipment, hunting equipment, bullet-proofequipment, motorcycle suits, gloves, protective inserts and all theother fields in which there is a need for a mobile, comfortable garmentwhich offers special protection against puncture wounds.

I claim:
 1. A protective garment for protection of body parts againstcuts or puncture wounds caused by sharp objects, where at least aportion of the garment comprises at least one inner layer, at least oneprotective layer and possibly one or more outer layers, characterized inthat at least one protective layer is composed of a woven wire meshconsisting of metal wires, where the thickness of the metal wires isbetween 0.03 mm and 0.2 mm and the apertures in the wire mesh arebetween 0.05 mm and 0.45 mm.
 2. A protective garment according to claim1, characterized in that the wire mesh is woven from metal wiresconsisting of non-corrosive stainless steel.
 3. A protective garmentaccording to claim 1, characterized in that different portions of thegarment contain a different number of protective layers of woven wiremesh.
 4. A protective garment according to claim 1, characterized inthat the garment is a glove, a jacket, a waistcoat or trousers.
 5. Aprotective garment according to claim 1, where the garment is a glove,characterized in that the protective layers of wire mesh cover the wholepalm of the hand and parts of the lateral surfaces of the fingers.
 6. Aprotective garment according to claim 5, characterized in that the partof the glove corresponding to the palm of the hand is covered by atleast two, and preferably five, protective layers of wire mesh, and thatthe parts of the glove corresponding to the fingers' inner surfaces arecovered by two protective layers of wire mesh.
 7. A protective garmentaccording to claim 1, characterized in that the garment is a removableloose part for use on arms or legs, or on other body parts, under orover the clothes.
 8. A protective garment according to claim 1, wherethe garment is a waistcoat or jacket, characterized in that the garmentalso comprises at least one layer of bullet-proof material.
 9. Aprotective garment according to claim 1, characterized in that the innerlayer and outer layer are made of soft and flexible material.
 10. Aprotective garment according to claim 1, at least two of the layersbeing joined together by gluing, by seams or by lamination.
 11. Aprotective garment according to claim 2, where the garment is awaistcoat or jacket, characterized in that the garment also comprises atleast one layer of bullet-proof material.
 12. A protective garmentaccording to claim 2, characterized in that different portions of thegarment contain a different number of protective layers of woven wiremesh.
 13. A protective garment according to claim 12, the garment beinga glove, a jacket, a waistcoat or trousers.
 14. A protective garmentaccording to claim 12, where the garment is a glove wherein theprotective layers of wire mesh cover the whole palm of the hand andparts of the lateral surfaces of the fingers.
 15. A protective garmentaccording to claim 14, the part of the glove corresponding to the palmof the hand being covered by at least two, and preferably five,protective layers of wire mesh, and the parts of the glove correspondingto the fingers' inner surfaces being covered by two protective layers ofwire mesh.
 16. A protective garment for protection of body parts againstcuts or puncture wounds caused by sharp objects, the garment having aninner layer, a protective layer, and an outer layer, the protectivelayer being a woven mesh of metal wires, the metal wires havingapertures therebetween, the metal wires having a thickness between 0.03mm and 0.2 mm.
 17. A protective garment according to claim 16, theapertures in the wire mesh being between 0.05 mm and 0.45 mm.
 18. Aprotective garment according to claim 16, the metal wires beingmonofilament wires.
 19. A protective garment according to claim 16, themetal wires being multifilament wires.
 20. A protective garmentaccording to claim 16, the metal wires being stainless steel.